Rat Girl Summer is here, but what is the latest TikTok trend about?

According to Lola Kolade, the best nights out and most memorable experiences often don't translate well on camera. This realisation led her to embrace the concept of being a rat girl for the summer, prioritising the pursuit of fun over aesthetics.

As she explains it in her now-viral video on TikTok, rat girl summer involves “scurrying around the streets,” “nibbling on our little snacks” and “generally finding ourselves in places we have no business being in.”

Translation: It's about maintaining your confidence and carefree spirit, but with an added touch of wild energy and partaking in spontaneous activities that you’ve always wanted to do but are too afraid to try. Want to go to a bar by yourself on a weeknight just to see what happens? Go! Throw a party for absolutely no reason but to celebrate life? Why not.

To put it simply, this is your unbothered era. Instead of overthinking, the idea is to get outside, scurry around, and have a carefree time.

If you’re still unsure about what a rat girl summer exactly is, Lola Kolade has a follow-up video on her page. The four rules of a rat girl summer are:

Going outside: The number one rule of a rat girl summer is that you have to leave your house. "You cannot scurry in bed. You cannot scurry on your couch,” notes Lola. After all, life happens outside (you know, where the rats are).
Eating and enjoying eating: Rule number two is to “nibble on our little snacks” and “eat nourishing meals” so that we’ll have the energy to “cause mischief”.
Killing the cringe: The next rule is simple – “The part of you that feels embarrassed when you wanna do certain things? Kill it immediately.” This summer, we’re all about embracing the cringe.
NO OVERTHINKING: And last, rat girl summer is all about not overthinking. “No constant crowd-sourcing of opinions before you make a decision or constantly second-guessing yourself. Do rats ask questions when they’re lugging a slice of cheese down the street? No. And that’s the exact energy you’re trying to achieve.

The types of rats

Credit: TikTok/@umgabi

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But wait – why stop at being one type of rat? With Rat Girl Summer taking off on TikTok, other content creators have put their own spin on the trend by naming the different kinds of rats that they want to be.

Other types of rats include:

The classic rat: The name speaks for itself
The flying squirrel: “Heart of a rat but always flying to party abroad and everyone’s like how but also respect.” (Apparently, TikTok It-girl Alix Earle is a prime example of someone embracing their flying squirrel summer)
The mouse: “Former rat but is sometimes in hiding these days because of boyfriend/job/summer school. Basically she’s after that cheddar.”
The hedgehog: “Veteran rat that’s been around the block and is quiet till you mess with her. Then the spikes come out.”
The rabbit: “The one with one objective on nights out: to return home…with someone else.”